Means for aerial flight.



No. 834,658: P'ATENTED OUT. so, 1966.

' o. GHANUTB.

MEANS FOR AERIAL FLIGHT.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 18, 1904.

UNITED STATES PATENT O FICE.

OCTAVE CHANUTE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS. MEANS FO AERIAL FLIGHT.

To all whom it mar concern:

Be' it known that I, OGTAVE OHANUTE, a citizen of the United States, residing in Chicago, in'the county of Cook and State of- Illiposes.

I the flying or glidmg machine and its-niperator platform-car, is placed on the trac rest, a track for the car, a windingrum,a motor for actuating the winding-drum, a line extending from the winding-drum to the flying or gliding machine, and a trip hook or device for disconnectin the line fromthe flying or gliding machine ater it ascends to the required height under the action of the winding-drum and line. The winding-drum and its motor are referably mounted upon a truck or wheeled vehicle. l

y mvention also consists in the novel construction of parts and devices and in the novel combinations of parts and devices herein shown or described.

In practicing my invention the track, which is preferably of a portable kind, is generally laid in the direction of the existing Wind and the car, which is preferablK a light The truck carrying the winding-drum and its motor is placed to windward a suitable distance say from two hundred to one thousand feet and is firmly blocked or anchored in line with the portable track, which'is referably eighty or one hundred feet in lengtli. The flying or gliding machineto be launched'with its operator is placed on the platform-car at the leeward end of the ortable track. The line, which is preferab y a flexible combination wire-and-cord cable, is stretched between the windin -drum on the track and detachabl secured to thefiying or gliding machine, re

'erably b means of a trip-hook, or else he (1 in the han of the operator, so that the operator may readily detach the same from the flyingmachine when the desired height is attained. Then upon a signal given by the flying or gliding machine operator the engineer at Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed September 16, 1904. Serial No. 224,696.

cends like a kite to desired by the operator, who then trips the Patented Oct. 30, 1906.

the motor puts it into oiperation, gradually increasing the speed unt the line is wound upon the at a maximum speed of, say, thirty miles the flying-machine, whether he stands upright and carries it on his shoulders or whether an hour. The operator of" he sits or lies down prone upon it, adjusts the aero lane or carrying surfaces so that the win shall strike them on the top and press downward instead of upward until the platform-car under action of the windingand line attains there uired speed. When the operator j ud es that his speed is sufficient, and this depen wind as well as that of the car moving against the wind, he quickly causes the front of the flying-machine to tip upward, so that the relative wind striking on the under side of the planes or carrying surfaces shall lift the flying-machine into such height as may be hook and releasesthe line from the machine. The operator being now free in the air has a ing-drum and line and also a otential energy corres onding to his he'ig t above the ground. the flying or gliding machine is rovided with a motor, he can utilize that 's further flight, and if it is a simple gliding machine without motor he can make'a descending flight through the air to'such dis-, tance as corresponds to the velocity acquired and the height gained, steering meanwhile by the devices provided for that purpose. The simplest o eration or maneuver is to continue the flight straight ahead against the wind; but it is to the right .or le or even to return in downward flight with 'the wind to the vicinity of the starting-point. Upon nearing the ground the operator tips u ward his carrying-surfaces and stops his l ieadway upon the cushion ofv increased air resistance so caused. The operator is in no way permanently fastened to his machine and the machine and the operator simply rest upon the light platform-car, so that the operator is free to rise with the machine from the car whenever the re uired initial velocity is attained. v

n the'accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a plan View of an apparatus embodying my 1nven-' tion. Fig. 2 1s a side elevation. Fig. 3 shows the flying or s upon the velocity of the Rossible to vary this course the air. It then asi certain initial velocity imparted by the windgliding machine in the air after belng launched. Fig. 4 is a. detail view of the triphook, and Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the flying or gliding machine.

In the drawings, A represents the portable track; B, a light latform-car resting thereon D, a flying or gli ing machine of any suitable kind or construction. The flyin or gliding machine, which for convenience flhave illustrated in the drawings, is a simple aero lane or liding machine without motor or sel -proe1 er. It comprises a light rectangular ame d, furnished with two horizontal but slightly-curved pressure surfaces or lanes (1 d, one above the other, and depen ing supporting-bars (1 upon which the operator may rest with his arms, leaving his hands and forearms free to tilt or direct the machine by gras ing the cord-u rights d. The glidingmac ine D is also connected thereto by light bars 01 and having upright and horizontal planes (1 d. E

represents a truck or wagon u on which the motor F and winding-drum are carried. The motor may be of any suitable kind or construction, but is preferably an electric or gasolene motor. The winding-drum G is prefera-bly furnished with any suitable or customary reversing-glide g to cause the line H to wind smoothly and evenly upon the drum.

The line is preferably a cable composed of,

flexible wire and having a cotton or other cord core to increase its exibility. The line extends from the drum to the flying or gliding machine. Its free end may, if desired, be grasped and held b the operator until the flying-machine ascen s to the desired height, when by simply letting go of the line the o rator may continue his flight free. The e, however,is preferably connected to thefl ing or gliding machine directly by a trip-hoo M, having a handle or trip lever'm within reach of the operator, so thatwhen he ascends to the required height he may readily detach the line from the flying or gliding machine.

I disclaim the mechanism shown and described in the British atent to Robert Kraus's, No. 18,663, dat August 12, 1897, wherein the line is permanently attached at one end to the machine and the line is not designed or adapted to be cast loose or disconnected frcm the machine while the machine is in the air.

In my invention one end of the line is connected to the stationary windhig d-rum and the other end of the .line is deta'chably connected to the flying-machine through the trip-hook device (or thro operator thereon if it is, as 4 fore stated, held in the hand) and is ada ted'to be cast loose when the operator an the machine have been caused to ascend to the desired height of a movable platform, a flying-mac ine on by the o eration of the drum and the connecting hne, thus enabling flying or gliding machine to be llaunched free into the air, so that the machine and operator after making the desired flight may descend and alight nished with a tail D trip device h the hand of the i upon theground in safety and so that at the time of allghting the machine may be dirigible and under the control of the operator thereon and so that the machine and the operator may be at the time of alighting entirely free from such dangerous and destructive forward movement or propulsion as is or would be due to the operation of the drum and aline leading therefrom and permanently connected to the machine-or to the operator thereon and which would obviously render safe alighting impossible or cause it to be attended with great danger to the machine and to the operator thereon. My invention is designed to rovide a practical and successful means for aunching free into the air flying or gliding machines, a step which is not only necessary for the subsequent free flight of the machine in the air, but also necessary for the safe alighting of the machine and its operator on the ground.

I claim- 1. The combination with a flyi or gliding machine, of a car, a track for t e car, a stationary winding-drum, a motor for actuating the drum, and a line wound at one end thereof around the, drum and extending therefrom to the flying or gliding machine and adapted to be cast loose by the operator thereon'when said machine has been caused to ascend to the. desired height by operation of the drum; whereby the flying or gliding machine and the operator thereon may caused to ascend from the level of the ground and be then launched free into the air at the desired height and enabled subse uently to safely alight, substantially as speci ed.

2. The combination with a flying or gliding machine, of a car,a track for the car, a stationary winding-drum, a motor for actuating the drum, a line extending from the drum to the flying or gliding machine, and a trip hook or device for disconnecting the line from the flying or gliding machine whereby the flying or gliding machine is caused to asoend from the level of the ground and be then launched free into the air at the desired height, substantially as specified.

3. The comb'nation with a stationary winding-drum, of a track, a car on the track, a flying-machine on the car, a line extending from the drum to the flying-machine, and a for disconnecting the line from the fiyi -m.achine whereby the flying or gliding mac no is caused to ascend from the level of the ground and be'then launched free into the air at the desired height, substantially as specified.

4. The combination with a windin -drum,

the latform, a line extending from the drum to tile flying-machine, and a trip device for disconnecting the line from the flying-machine whercby the flying or glidin machine is caused to ascend from the level 0 the ground 834,658 r l a and be then launched free into the air at the chine, and a trip device for disconnecting the IO desired height, substantially as specified. line from the flying Or gliding machine when 5. The means for launching flying 0r glidit ascends to the re ulred hei ht and thus ing machinesfrom thelevel 0f the ground into launching it free in t eair, su stantially as 5 the air at the required height, consisting in specified.

the combination with a winding-drum, of a OCTAVE CHANUTE. flying 0r gliding machine having devices for Witnesses: v supporting a man thereon, a line extending H. M. MUNDAY,

from the drum to the flying or gliding ma EDW. S. EvAR rs. 

